Nguyen recalls recruitment process of Johnny Manziel

WACO – Dat Nguyen remembers the first time he saw quarterback Johnny Manziel.

Nguyen was an assistant coach at Texas A&M under Mike Sherman. Nguyen, who was a star linebacker for the Aggies before playing for the Dallas Cowboys, was on a recruiting trip with two other assistant coaches.

Manziel was the quarterback at Kerrville Tivy. He had committed to Oregon.

Nguyen was scouting a linebacker.

“Tom Rossley, myself and Randy Jordan were there,” Nguyen said Thursday night before his induction into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. “Tom was looking at Johnny.”

Manziel put on a spectacular performance.

“We were watching him, looking at each other and shaking our heads,” Nguyen said. “How can we not offer (a scholarship to) this guy?

“We came back the next morning and had a team meeting right before a game. I think it was Missouri. (Manziel’s) parents and grandparents were invited.

“That morning, Tom Rossley got up on the table and said, ‘Mike Sherman, if you don’t give this guy a scholarship, we’re fools.’ That’s exactly what happened. He de-committed to Oregon and committed to us after that.”